Karen Guenther

Biography

Karen Guenther, the spouse of an active duty United States Marine Corps Colonel and registered nurse with more than two decades of experience, is the inspiration behind the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund: a nonprofit organization supporting the men and women of the United States Armed Forces and their families.

From its humble beginnings in 2004 as a locally-based grassroots charge to provide assistance to the Marines and Navy corpsmen injured on the battlefields of Afghanistan and Iraq, the Semper Fi Fund has grown exponentially into a worldwide charitable organization. By working diligently to maintain overhead costs of less than 6%, the majority of the monies donated (94%) go to the programs that directly benefit service members.

The Semper Fi Fund has distributed $75 million in assistance to over 9,500 service members and their families, processing 58,000 grants since inception.

Under Karen’s leadership, the Semper Fi Fund has been recognized as one of the premier non-governmental organizations supporting service members and their families. The Semper Fi Fund has consistently earned the highest marks from the charitable industries’ foremost and well-respected regulators, earning an A+ Rating from Charity Watch (formerly known as the American Institute of Philanthropy) and the highest possible rating of Four Stars from Charity Navigator.

Karen grew up on a grape farm in central California before graduating from Fresno State University with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing. Specializing in pediatric intensive care, emergency room, and pediatric floor nursing, she was named the UCSD Medical Center "Pediatric Nurse of the Year". Before taking her passion to the Semper Fi Fund, Karen proudly served on a medial mission to Santiago, Chile and worked tirelessly with bereavement programs across America.

Karen’s work with the military has bestowed her numerous accolades including the U.S. Field Artillery Association Molly Pitcher Award, the Marine Corps League Dickey Chapelle Award, the Daughters of the American Revolution Medal of Honor, and the Cookie Award from Cookie Magazine for mothers who make a difference in the world. In 2013, Karen was selected as the Marine Corps Spouse of the Year from the Armed Forces Insurance Military Spouse of the Year award.

Karen currently resides in Manassas, Virginia with her husband, USMC Colonel Glenn Guenther, and their daughter, Brooke, as well as their dogs, Maggie, Bear, Jake, and Pixie, and their horse, Dash.

Education

No information available.

Admissions/Licenses

No information available.